Tech's new season-ticket structure shows price decreases in nine sections of Jones AT&T Stadium, increases in 14 sections and no change in six sections, according to a plan announced late last week

When it became clear Texas Tech would host Texas, Oklahoma and West Virginia during the 2012 football season, Steve Uryasz said many Red Raiders fans were expecting a significant season-ticket price increase.

Instead, some season tickets are increasing a little, some are descreasing and many fans could enjoy a larger tax break.

Tech’s new season-ticket structure shows price decreases in nine sections of Jones AT&T Stadium, increases in 14 sections and no change in six sections, according to a plan announced late last week and landing in fans’ mailboxes this week. Four sections have both increases and decreases.

“We wanted to make sure we created a situation where we could get as many people into the stadium as we possibly could and keep the price reasonable,” said Uryasz, Tech senior associate athletic director/Red Raider Club.

The most significant change might be how total ticket costs break down. This year, Tech is adopting a standardized season-ticket price of $189 in all but two sections of Jones AT&T Stadium, and more costs have been rolled into an annual seat contribution that offers the potential for a larger tax deduction.

For example, fans who sat on the 50-yard line last season paid $429 for season tickets and a $300 annual seat license for a total cost of $729. The same seats this year are $189 for tickets, plus $550 for the annual seat contribution for a total of $739.

In the next-best tier, fans paid $429 for season tickets and $150 for a seat license last year for a total cost of $579. The same seats this year go for $189 for the ticket and $400 for the annual seat contribution for a total cost of $589. The figures do not include Red Raider Club donations, which are required for seats in 26 sections of the stadium.

“The fundamental difference is (the annual seat contribution) is 80 percent tax deductible in some situations, and the (season-ticket price) is nothing,” Uryasz said.

“Theoretically, if your season tickets went up by $10 for the whole season, you may actually realize a savings in the big picture, because you’ll have the opportunity to write off more from a tax deductability standpoint.”

According to Tech, the total cost will go down by $40 to $90 in Sections 1, 9, 10, 102, 108 and 111 on the stadium’s west side and Sections 114, 116 and 122 on the east side.

Prices were marked up by $10 in Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 on the lower-level west side, Sections 104, 105 and 106 on the upper-level west side, Sections 18 and 19 on the lower-level east side and Section 119 on the upper-level east side.

Tech opted to split the price structure in four stadium sections. In west-side Sections 103 and 107, half the season tickets are $120 cheaper, and the other half are $60 more expensive. In east-side Sections 118 and 120, half the season tickets are $90 cheaper and half are $10 higher.

“What’s our rationale there? It’s supply and demand,” Uryasz said. “We struggled to fill that whole section, so we basically split it into two. ... What we tried to do was keep the pricing as level as we possibly could while at the same time driving some of those sections that hadn’t had a lot of demand in the past.”

Tech is coming off a 5-7 season, and economic conditions continue to strain many. That being the case, some might ask whether any increases are warranted.

“My response to that would be, we took a look at the demand in those areas,” Uryasz said of the sections with $60 markups. “They were very, very high demand areas for us. Then in addition to that, we really are excited about this new Big 12 schedule.

“The reality is, if you take a look at previous years, for the most part we’ve gone up across the board. So we took a look at the areas we thought we could go up a reasonable amount without moving fans to other areas. We’re hoping that’s the case.”

Tech increased season tickets $30 to $50, depending on location, for 2011. It boosted prices by $14 to $19 in most sections for 2010. Coming off an 11-win 2008 season, Tech boosted prices 10 percent in most locations for 2009 and put 12 sections under donor-based seating for the first time.

Tech has set a goal of increasing season-ticket sales by 20 percent from last season, when 41,747 were sold. Tech sold a record 46,565 in 2010 and stayed in a range between 38,000 and 42,000 the five seasons before that.

Uryasz said the stadium’s suites — 53 on the west side, 30 on the east side — are sold out. Of the 1,100 club seats on the west side and 544 on the east side, about 95 percent are sold, he said.

Seats in seven sections are available for the season-ticket cost alone: $189 for Sections 109, 110, 115, 116 and 122 and $149 for Sections 111 and 114.

To comment on this story:

don.williams@lubbockonline.com

• 766-8734

george.watson@lubbockonline.com

• 766-2166

Annual sales

Source: Texas Tech athletic department

Season ticket key dates

March 5: Payment due, either in full or first of five monthly installments.

ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here and for
following agreed-upon rules of civility. Posts and
comments do not reflect the views of this site. Posts and comments are
automatically checked for inappropriate language, but readers might find some
comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules,
click the "Flag as offensive" link below the comment.

Buy tickets and support the continued ruin of Tech sports. Tubervilles have given a new meaning to Wreck Em. The new one should be Defraud Em. Now we know why Tubs had so much in common with some of those JUCO transfers.

It is a little bit of word gymnastics. The prices went up $10 bucks in most of the better seating and you just get a bigger tax break to those who itemize on their income taxes. It helps those who make more money, to continue to get their season tickets and get their money back at the end of the year. Ticket prices did go down, if you say the ticket "license"/ "contribution" went up. Overall the prices went up and this is just a fancy way they actually went down. If you want to see the games you will pay no matter what unless it is an outragous amount of increase and this is not. So bottom line just call it what it is (an increase) instead of trying to make look like something it isn't.

Just like everything in this economy, prices of things we need and want are going up. The White House Nuclear Winter continues....

Folks, the people who hired Tuberville wrote the book on deceit. Frankly, the occupation "lobbyist" reeks of a scenario where money is paid to acquire government favor, contracts, considerations, and even comfortable law making. And we have a "lobbyist" for a Chancellor who is 100% surrounded by those who have purchased favor from the governor time and again.

You will note that since Hance, Anders, Turner, Scovell, White, and Sowell; led the conspiracy to deny due process to Tech's highest paid employee YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THEM IN PUBLIC.

Until such time as THE HOUSE IS CLEANED in Lubbock there will be no progress. As long as Perry allows these people to remain WE HAVE NO CHANCE. And folks, we've got Perry until the end of time.

Maybe the Flubberville thing is on My Lubbock, but when it was Leach, it was everywhere. It is amazing how biased coverage is. It is all over media around the country though. With the fraud, conspiracy, slander, flat out lies, fabrications, falsifying information and other activities that are documented in court records as committed by the Board of Regents, the James gang, Hance, Myers and others; what kind of coach did you think they would hire? And, you can't even get it through the courts with them having political control of that in the state. It's the birds of a feather syndrome. More and more comes out about Flubbs that puts him right in there in the middle of the pack. He can't keep coaches or good players; as soon as they see how this program is going to be run with direction on who plays coming via the telephone, they look for the first opportunity to get out. Every effort has been made to run off all of the players recruited by Mike Leach. Just look at the legacy that Myers et al has left us with; football and basketball programs at the bottom of the league. We are simply a laughing stock; far from where we were in the Leach Era. And, negative things just keep rising to the top. It won't change until the top is changed and we are in for a long haul. What a shame.

This is classic Tech. Spin a price increase as a price decrease. Call it what it is. I imagine sales will be down regardless since we're bound for another losing season without a bowl game. Thanks Tom. It is unfortunate that Tech administration cannot admit they made a mistake. I graduated from there but they will never get a contribution from me.

If they want anybody in the stands, they better lower all of the prices. Even then, it may not help except with the locals. For those of us that live four to five hundred miles away, a few dollars one way or the other will not make much difference. The cost for travel, motels, meals, and tickets for one game would always come to around $1000. After being humiliated in the stands the last two years, I am not up for it again. I don't care what the tickets cost, I won't be back until Tubbs is gone. I can find better ways to spend my $1000.

As a loyal Techster, the best thing you can do is DO NOT COME TO LUBBOCK. The problem is, there's nobody to complain to. Not to Perry. Not to any official at Tech. Not to State Senator Duncan. NOBODY TO COMPLAIN TO, BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL IN HE DEAL. THEY ARE PERRY PEOPLE FIRST AND FOREMOST AND FOREVER. There is no escape. It is a bought and paid for deal. AND FOR $1,000 YOU'RE LUCKY. I owned football, mens basketball, womens basketball, and baseball tickets for years. Paid through the nose for options when Knight came in. The thing to do is get ready for Texas Rangers Baseball. Nolan Ryan is not a liar and cheat.